1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a protective shield for protection against needle contamination and accidental needle puncture. More particularly, this invention relates to a protective shield for protection against a needle which is inserted into an implanted intravenous cannula assembly or an auxiliary branch of a piggy back intravenous system.
2. Background Discussion
Intravenous systems are commonly used in treating patients with highly contagious diseases such as AIDs and hepatitis. The intravenous systems frequently include an implanted cannula assembly which, when the intravenous system is used on a human, is inserted in the upper surface of the hand or in some other convenient location. The implanted cannula assembly usually includes a flexible conduit extending below the skin together with a reception port above the surface of the skin. The reception port provides a location at which a fluid introduction device, such as a syringe or the end of an intravenous tube, is attached. The reception port is designed for easy removal of the intravenous tube so as to free the intravenous source from the patient for the purposes of providing a heparin flush, changing the intravenous fluid, easy movement of the patient, etc.
In the situations where a cannula is inserted in the reception port to inject a fluid (e.g. a heparin flush), the operator is subjected to the possibility of being stuck by the needle as the cannula is being manipulated for insertion into the reception port. There is also the chance of being stuck by a cannula when removing or replacing the cannula. Thus, medical personnel and, as is becoming more common today, family members in the case of home therapy and the like treating outpatients are susceptible to being stuck and being infected. Also, even if medical personnel or those people assisting outpatients are not infected, expensive tests and regulatory reports are required each time a person is stuck just to determine and record whether or not that person has been infected.
The intravenous tubing systems commonly used today also frequently include a piggy-back arrangement which comprises a fluid line connected to a patient at one end and to a bag or bottle of the opposite end. A Y-site or Y-junction is placed or formed in the fluid line. The Y-junction includes an auxiliary branch which is either connected to an auxiliary line and intravenous fluid source or, alternatively, provides a location for the injection of fluid with a syringe.
In utilizing such intravenous tubing systems, it is often required that a person helping the patient insert a needle into the auxiliary branch or remove a needle previously inserted. The person, removing the needle from the auxiliary branch or inserting the needle, is placed in jeopardy of being stuck or contaminated by coming into contact with an infected needle. Once the needle is removed, there also exists the possibility of medical personnel loosing grip of the auxiliary line and needle and dropping the needle. This creates not only the problem of fluid spattering but also increases the potential for medical personnel being stuck or scratched by the needle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,292 to Lopez et al. discloses one solution to the problem of having medical personnel becoming contaminated by a needle previously inserted into the auxiliary branch of an intravenous tubing system. Lopez et al. feature an elongated cylindrical connector which surrounds the auxiliary branch needle and is designed for locking connection with the free end of the auxiliary branch of the piggy back intravenous system. The invention of Lopez et al., however, requires that the auxiliary branch of the piggy back intravenous system be specially designed for connection with the elongated cylinder encompassing the needle. Accordingly, the auxiliary line connector of Lopez et al. can only be used with a restrictive class of piggy back systems. Namely, a piggy back system utilizing an auxiliary branch specially designed for connection with the Lopez et al. elongated cylinder and associated attachment means.
Moreover, the rather complicated attachment means relied on in Lopez et al. present manufacturing problems as well as an increased chance of component failure.